HTC Launches EXODUS 1, Its First Ever blockchain-Enabled Phone

HTC Launches EXODUS 1, Its First Ever blockchain-Enabled Phone

Global consumer tech giant, HTC, is officially launching its first blockchain-enabled phone, Exodus 1. This comes a decade after it launched its first android phone. The Taiwanese phone maker said it developed its own cryptocurrency wallet called Zion to make its new phone function as a hardware cryptocurrency wallet. Exodus 1 is available for preorder

Global consumer tech giant, HTC, is officially launching its first blockchain-enabled phone, Exodus 1. This comes a decade after it launched its first android phone.

The Taiwanese phone maker said it developed its own cryptocurrency wallet called Zion to make its new phone function as a hardware cryptocurrency wallet.

Exodus 1 is available for preorder on HTC website, the phone will ship sometime in early December and can only be purchased using cryptocurrency, specifically bitcoin and Ethereum.

Genesis Block. Exodus Phone.

This is official early access release to the EXODUS 1. We are inviting a community of developers and enthusiasts to work with us to keep building security. Join us in rebuilding trust together, one phone at a time. Get your early access now! pic.twitter.com/sPcNc7wnzj

Currently, EXODUS 1 is expected to open for pre-order in 34 countries and regions, including the United States, Taiwan, Hong Kong, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Austria, Norway, and other European regions, etc.

The Exodus 1 comes with a secure enclave — a secluded area on the phone’s chip kept separate from the Android operating system (OS) it runs on — that uses technology made by Arm Holdings to keep a customer’s cryptocurrency safe.

HTC’s new phone will run decentralized applications, digital programs that operate on the blockchain.

“Think of it as a micro OS that runs in parallel with Android,” Phil Chen, HTC’s decentralized chief officer, told CNBC over the phone. “It basically is a wallet, but the wallet, what it does is hold your private keys.” Private keys are lines of code which are meant to be known only to the owner of a cryptocurrency to allow them access to their funds.

According to Chen, the benefit of keeping this area of the phone separate from Android was that Google’s OS is “fundamentally insecure with a centralized system,” and therefore storing cryptocurrency using Android would make a user’s funds more vulnerable to a hack.